POLITICS & ELECTIONS

Harris and Trump get ready for a landmark debate

Sep 10, 2024, 5:55 PM | Updated: 6:39 pm

Harris Trump debate...

In this combination photo, Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., speaks during a debate, Oct. 7, 2020, in Salt Lake City, left, and Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks during a debate, June 27, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo)

(AP Photo)

PROGRAMMING NOTE: The debate airs on NBC Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Utah, hosted by ABC.


PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Kamala Harris and Donald Trump will meet for the first time face-to-face Tuesday night for perhaps their only debate, a high-pressure opportunity to showcase their starkly different visions for the country after a tumultuous campaign summer.

The event, at 9 p.m. Eastern in Philadelphia, will offer Americans their most detailed look at a campaign that’s dramatically changed since the last debate in June. In rapid fashion, President Joe Biden bowed out of the race after his disastrous performance, Trump survived an assassination attempt and bothsides chose their running mates.

Harris is intent on demonstrating that she can press the Democratic case against Trump better than Biden did. Trump, in turn, is trying to paint the vice president as an out-of-touch liberal while trying to win over voters skeptical he should return to the White House.

Trump, 78, has struggled to adapt to Harris, 59, who is the first woman, Black person and person of South Asian descent to serve as vice president. The Republican former president has at times resorted to invoking racial and gender stereotypes, frustrating allies who want Trump to focus instead on policy differences with Harris.

The vice president, for her part, will try to claim a share of credit for the Biden administration’s accomplishments while also addressing its low moments and explaining her shifts away from more liberal positions she took in the past.

The debate will subject Harris, who has sat for only a single formal interview in the past six weeks, to a rare moment of sustained questioning.

Her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, speaking Tuesday to donors in Las Vegas, highlighted Trump’s experience debating after three White House runs.

“No one in modern times has done more of these,” he said. “The good news is that this is his seventh debate, and we know exactly what to expect.”

The first early ballots of the presidential race will go out just hours after the debate, hosted by ABC News. Absentee ballots are set to be sent out beginning Wednesday in Alabama.
The set where the two candidates will be debating tonight is relatively small. The candidates’ lecterns are positioned about 6-8 feet apart in a small, blue-lit amphitheater with no live audience in the room. That means there will be no rowdy applause, no cheers or jeers.

The candidates will enter at the same time from opposite sides of the stage.

Trump and his campaign have spotlighted far-left positions Harris took during her failed 2020 presidential bid. He’s been assisted in his informal debate prep sessions by Tulsi Gabbard, the former Democratic congresswoman and presidential candidate who tore into Harris during their primary debates.

Harris has sought to defend her shifts away from liberal causes to more moderate stances on fracking, expanding Medicare for all and mandatory gun buyback programs — and even backing away from her position that plastic straws should be banned — as pragmatism, insisting that her “values remain the same.” Her campaign on Monday published a page on its website listing her positions on key issues.

Trump’s team insist his tone won’t be any different facing a female opponent.

“President Trump is going to be himself,” senior adviser Jason Miller told reporters during a phone call Monday.

Gabbard, who was also on the call, added that Trump “respects women and doesn’t feel the need to be patronizing or to speak to women in any other way than he would speak to a man.”

The vice president, who has been the Biden administration’s most outspoken supporter of abortion access after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, is expected to focus on calling out Trump’s inconsistencies around women’s reproductive care, including his announcement that he will vote to protect Florida’s six-week abortion ban in a statewide referendum this fall.

She is likely to warn that Trump presents a threat to democracy, from his attempts in 2020 to overturn his loss in the presidential election, spurring his angry supporters to attack the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, through comments he made as recently as last weekend. Trump on social media issued yet another message of retribution, threatening that if he wins he will jail “those involved in unscrupulous behavior,” including lawyers, political operatives, donors, voters and election officials.


Price and Miller reported from Washington. AP Polling Editor Amelia Thomson-DeVeaux in Washington and Thomas Beaumont in Las Vegas, Bill Barrow in Atlanta and Josh Boak in Philadelphia contributed to this report.

KSL 5 TV Live

Politics & Elections

A new bill being debated this legislative session could provide hundreds of more high school kids w...

Dan Rascon

New Utah bill could provide technical education to hundreds more high school students

A new bill being debated this legislative session could open the door for hundreds of more high school kids to technical careers—before they graduate.

5 hours ago

The Utah State Capitol stands in Salt Lake City on the first day of the legislative session on Tues...

Daniella Rivera

‘Damaging’ sexual assault language removed from crime data collection bill

A section in a crime data collection bill filed two weeks ago had sexual assault survivors, experts and advocates sounding alarm bells.

7 hours ago

FILE (Getty Images)...

Daniel Woodruff

Some DUI convicts in Utah may have ‘no alcohol sale’ stamped on ID under new bill

A proposal in the Legislature would require certain Utahns convicted of DUI to carry a special driver’s license stating they are not allowed to buy alcohol.

11 hours ago

commercial driver's license...

Daniel Woodruff

Santaquin police sergeant’s death prompts proposal to tighten commercial driver’s license rules

HB375 would not allow someone to receive a commercial driver’s license in Utah if they have been convicted in the last three years of certain crimes.

11 hours ago

Tulsi Gabbard, President Donald Trump's choice to be the Director of National Intelligence, arrives...

David Klepper, Associated Press

Senate confirms Gabbard as Trump’s director of national intelligence after Republicans fall in line

The Senate has confirmed Tulsi Gabbard as President Donald Trump’s director of national intelligence.

17 hours ago

Elon Musk listens as President Donald Trump speaks with reporters in the Oval Office at the White H...

David Bauder, AP Media Writer

White House bars AP reporter from Oval Office because of AP style policy on ‘Gulf of America’

The White House blocked an Associated Press reporter from attending an event in the Oval Office after demanding AP alter its style on the Gulf of Mexico, which President Donald Trump has ordered renamed to the Gulf of America.

19 hours ago

Sponsored Articles

luxury living room with a classic white sofa and sofa, interior design...

Lighting Design

Revisiting home lighting trends for 2025

Looking for inspiration to revamp your home lighting? This article outlines some of the emerging lighting trends for 2025.

holiday gift basket with blue tissue paper and gingerbread cookies...

Kneaders Bakery & Cafe

Holiday hacks for a stress-free season

Get more out of your time with family and loved ones over the holidays by following these tips for a stress-free season.

2 computer techs in a computer shop holding up a computer server with the "hang loose" sign...

PC Laptops

A comprehensive guide to choosing the right computer

With these tips, choosing the right computer that fits your needs and your budget will be easier than ever.

crowds of people in a German style Christmas market...

This Is The Place Heritage Park

Celebrate Christkindlmarket at This Is The Place Heritage Park!

The Christkindlmarket is an annual holiday celebration influenced by German traditions and generous giving.

Image of pretty woman walking in snowy mountains. Portrait of female wearing warm winter earmuff, r...

Lighting Design

Brighten your mood this winter with these lighting tricks

Read our lighting tips on how to brighten your mood in the winter if you are experiencing seasonal affective disorder.

A kitchen with a washer and dryer and a refrigerator...

Appliance Man

Appliance Man: a trusted name in Utah’s home appliance industry

Despite many recent closures of local appliance stores, Appliance Man remains Utah's trusted home appliance business and is here to stay.

Harris and Trump get ready for a landmark debate